This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2011) This article is about lodging. For other uses see Hotel (disambiguation). "Hotel room" redirects here. For the 1993 HBO television series see Hotel Room. Not to be confused with Hostel. The Savoy Hotel London United Kingdom The Hilton San Diego Bayfront San Diego United States Atrium Lobby of the Shanghai Grand Hyatt Shanghai China

A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation in times past consisting only of a room with a bed a cupboard a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities including en-suite bathrooms and air conditioning or climate control. Additional common features found in hotel rooms are a telephone an alarm clock a television a safe a mini-bar with snack foods and drinks and facilities for making tea and coffee. Luxury features include bathrobes and slippers a pillow menu twin-sink vanities and jacuzzi bathtubs. Larger hotels may provide additional guest facilities such as a restaurant swimming pool fitness center business center childcare conference facilities and social function services.

Hotel rooms are usually numbered (or named in some smaller hotels and B&Bs) to allow guests to identify their room.

Some hotels offer meals as part of a room and board arrangement. In the United Kingdom a hotel is required by law to serve food and drinks to all guests within certain stated hours. In Japan capsule hotels provide a minimized amount of room space and shared facilities. Contents 1 Etymology 2 Types 3 Management 4 Historic hotels 5 Unusual hotels 5.1 Treehouse hotels 5.2 Straw bale hotels 5.3 Bunker hotels 5.4 Shoe hotels 5.5 Cave hotels 5.6 Capsule hotels 5.7 Ice and snow hotels 5.8 Garden hotels 5.9 Underwater hotels 5.10 Other unusual hotels 5.11 Resort hotels 5.12 Railway hotels 6 Motels 7 World record setting hotels 7.1 Largest 7.2 Oldest 7.3 Tallest 8 Hotel rooms as an investment 9 Living in hotels 10 Fictitious hotels 11 See also 11.1 Industry and careers 11.2 Human habitation types 12 References 13 Further reading Etymology Corinthia Grand Hotel Royal Budapest Hungary

The word hotel is derived from the French htel (coming from hte meaning host) which referred to a French version of a townhouse or any other building seeing frequent visitors rather than a place offering accommodation. In contemporary French usage htel now has the same meaning as the English term and htel particulier is used for the old meaning. The French spelling with the circumflex was also used in English but is now rare. The circumflex replaces the 's' found in the earlier hostel spelling which over time took on a new but closely related meaning. Grammatically hotels usually take the definite article hence "The Astoria Hotel" or simply "The Astoria." Types

Hotel operations vary in size function and cost. Most hotels and major hospitality companies that operate hotels have set widely accepted industry standards to classify hotel types. General categories include the following; Upscale Luxury Examples include Conrad Hotels Ritz-Carlton Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts and JW Marriott Hotels Full Service Examples include Hilton Marriott Doubletree and Hyatt Select Service Examples include Courtyard by Marriott and Hilton Garden Inn Limited Service Examples include Hampton Inn Fairfield Inn Days Inn and La Quinta Inns & Suites Extended Stay Examples include Homewood Suites by Hilton Residence Inn by Marriott and Extended Stay Hotels Timeshare Examples include Marriott Vacation Club International Westgate Resorts and Disney Vacation Club Destination Club Management Main article: Hotel management

Hotel management is a significant career. Larger hotels may operate with an extensive management structure consisting of a General Manager which serves as the head executive department heads that oversee various departments middle managers administrative staff and line-level supervisors. Degree programs such as hospitality management studies a business degree and/or certification programs prepare hotel managers for industry practice. Historic hotels Hotel Astoria and a statue of Tsar Nicholas I of Russia in front in Saint Petersburg Russia

Some hotels have gained their renown through tradition by hosting significant events or persons such as Schloss Cecilienhof in Potsdam Germany which derives its fame from the Potsdam Conference of the World War II allies Winston Churchill Harry Truman and Joseph Stalin in 1945. The Taj Mahal Palace & Tower in Mumbai is one of India's most famous and historic hotels because of its association with the Indian independence movement. Some establishments have given name to a particular meal or beverage as is the case with the Waldorf Astoria in New York City United States where the Waldorf Salad was first created or the Hotel Sacher in Vienna Austria home of the Sachertorte. Others have achieved fame by association with dishes or cocktails created on their premises such as the Hotel de Paris where the crpe Suzette was invented or the Raffles Hotel in Singapore where the Singapore Sling cocktail was devised. Htel Ritz in Paris France

A number of hotels have entered the public consciousness through popular culture such as the Ritz Hotel in London United Kingdom through its association with Irving Berlin's song 'Puttin' on the Ritz'. The Algonquin Hotel in New York City is famed as the meeting place of the literary group the Algonquin Round Table and Hotel Chelsea also in New York City has been the subject of a number of songs and the scene of the stabbing of Nancy Spungen (allegedly by her boyfriend Sid Vicious). The Waldorf Astoria and Statler hotels in New York City are also immortalized in the names of Muppets Statler and Waldorf.citation needed Unusual hotels Chicago's Magnificent Mile has hosted many skyscraper hotels such as the Allerton Hotel

Many hotels can be considered destinations in themselves by dint of unusual features of the lodging or its immediate environment: Treehouse hotels Some hotels are built with living trees as structural elements for example the Costa Rica Tree House in the Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge Costa Rica; the Treetops Hotel in Aberdare National Park Kenya; the Ariau Towers near Manaus Brazil on the Rio Negro in the Amazon; and Bayram's Tree Houses in Olympos Turkey. Straw bale hotels In the little village of Nax Mont-Noble on 1300 metres in the Swiss Alps construction works for the Maya Guesthouse will start in 2011. It will be the first hotel built entirely with straw bales. It will need no heating due to the isolation values of the walls.1 Bunker hotels The Null Stern Hotel in Teufen Appenzellerland Switzerland and the Concrete Mushrooms in Albania2 are former nuclear bunkers transformed into hotels. Shoe hotels Shoe hotels are hotels built into a giant shoe. The idea was inspired by the "Old Woman who lived in a shoe" myth. The largest such hotel is currently in Hokkaido Japan. The most popular shoe hotels are modelled after a woman's platform dancing shoe.citation needed Cave hotels The Cuevas Pedro Antonio de Alarcn (named after the author) in Guadix Spain as well as several hotels in Cappadocia Turkey are notable for being built into natural cave formations some with rooms underground. The Desert Cave Hotel in Coober Pedy South Australia is built into the remains of an opal mine. Capsule hotels Capsule hotels are a type of economical hotel that are found in Japan where people sleep in stacks of rectangular containers. Ice and snow hotels Main article: Ice hotel The Ice Hotel in Jukkasjrvi Sweden and the Hotel de Glace in Duschenay Canada melt every spring and are rebuilt each winter; the Mammut Snow Hotel in Finland is located within the walls of the Kemi snow castle; and the Lainio Snow Hotel is part of a snow village near Ylls Finland. Garden hotels Garden hotels famous for their gardens before they became hotels include Gravetye Manor the home of garden designer William Robinson and Cliveden designed by Charles Barry with a rose garden by Geoffrey Jellicoe. Underwater hotels Some hotels have accommodation underwater such as Utter Inn in Lake Mlaren Sweden. Hydropolis project cancelled 2004 in Dubai would have had suites on the bottom of the Persian Gulf and Jules Undersea Lodge in Key Largo Florida requires scuba diving to access its rooms. Other unusual hotels RMS Queen Mary Long Beach California United States The Library Hotel in New York City is unique in that each of its ten floors is assigned one category from the Dewey Decimal System. The Burj al-Arab hotel in Dubai United Arab Emirates built on an artificial island is structured in the shape of a boat's sail. The Jailhotel Lwengraben in Lucerne Switzerland is a converted prison now used as a hotel. The Luxor a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise Nevada United States due to its pyramidal structure. The Liberty Hotel in Boston used to be the Charles Street Jail. Built in Scotland and completed in 1936 The former ocean liner RMS Queen Mary in Long Beach California United States uses its first-class staterooms as a hotel after retiring in 1967 from Transatlantic service. There are several hotels throughout the world built into converted airliners. Resort hotels Principe di Piemonte Viareggio (Italy) Some hotels are built specifically to create a captive trade example at casinos and holiday resorts. Though of course hotels have always been built in popular desinations the defining characteristic of a resort hotel is that it exists purely to serve another attraction the two having the same owners. In Las Vegas there is a tradition of one-upmanship with luxurious and extravagant hotels in a concentrated area known as the Las Vegas Strip. This trend now has extended to other resorts worldwide but the concentration in Las Vegas is still the world's highest: nineteen of the world's twenty-five largest hotels by room count are on the Strip with a total of over 67000 rooms.3 In Europe Center Parcs might be considered a chain of resort hotels since the sites are largely man-made (though set in natural surroundings such as country parks) with captive trade whereas holiday camps such as Butlins and Pontin's are probably not considered as resort hotels since they are set at traditional holiday destinations which existed before the camps. Railway hotels Frequently expanding railway companies built grand hotels at their termini such as the Midland Hotel Manchester next to the former Manchester Central Station and in London the ones above St Pancras railway station and Charing Cross railway station also in London is the Chiltern Court Hotel above Baker Street tube station and Canada's grand railway hotels. They are or were mostly but not exclusively used by those travelling by rail. Motels Main article: Motel A motel (motor hotel) is a hotel which is for a short stay usually for a night for motorists on long journeys. It has direct access from the room to the vehicle (for example a central parking lot around which the buildings are set) and is built conveniently close to major roads and intersections. World record setting hotels Historical Hotel Savoy in Florence Largest In 2006 Guinness World Records listed the First World Hotel in Genting Highlands Malaysia as the world's largest hotel with a total of 6118 rooms.4 Similarly the Venetian Palazzo Complex in Las Vegas has the most number of rooms. It has 7117 rooms followed by MGM Grand Hotel which contains 6852 rooms. see also List of largest hotels in the world Oldest According to the Guinness Book of World Records the oldest hotel still in operation is the Hoshi Ryokan in the Awazu Onsen area of Komatsu Japan which opened in 718.5 Tallest The Rose Tower in United Arab Emirates is the tallest building used exclusively as a hotel.6 Originally the tower was to be 380 m (1250 ft) high but design modification reduced it to 333 m (1093 ft). Hotel rooms as an investment Some hotels sell individual rooms to investors. Timeshare is an example of this kind of investment. The buyer is allowed to stay in the room without charge or at a reduced rate for a given number of days each year. The investor is paid a share of the takings for the room. Rooms can be sold on a leasehold basis sometimes on a 999 year lease. Room owners are free to sell at any time.7 Living in hotels A number of public figures have notably chosen to take up semi-permanent or permanent residence in hotels. Actor Richard Harris lived at the Savoy Hotel while in London. Hotel archivist Susan Scott recounts an anecdote that when he was being taken out of the building on a stretcher shortly before his death he raised his hand and told the diners "it was the food."8 Inventor Nikola Tesla lived the last 10 years of his life at the New Yorker Hotel until 1943 when he died in the hotel room. Millionaire Howard Hughes lived his last few years in a Las Vegas hotel. Egyptian actor Ahmad Zaki lived his last 15 years in Ramses Hilton Hotel Cairo. Larry Fine (of the Three Stooges) and his family lived in hotels due to his extravagant spending habits and his wife's dislike for housekeeping. They first lived in the President Hotel in Atlantic City New Jersey where his daughter Phyllis was raised then the Knickerbocker Hotel in Hollywood. Not until the late 1940s did Larry buy a home in the Los Feliz area of Los Angeles California. General Douglas McArthur lived his last 14 years in the penthouse of the Waldorf Towers a part of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. American actress Elaine Stritch lived in the Savoy Hotel in London for over a decade.9 Fashion designer Coco Chanel lived in the Hotel Ritz Paris on and off for more than 30 years. Vladimir Nabokov and his wife Vera lived in the Montreux Palace Hotel in Montreux Switzerland from 1961 until his death in 1977. British entrepreneur Jack Lyons lived in the Hotel Mirador Kempinski in Switzerland for several years until his death in 2008. Fictitious hotels This section requires expansion. Hotels have been used as the settings for television programmes such as the British situation comedies Fawlty Towers and I'm Alan Partridge the British soap opera Crossroads and in films such as the Bates Motel in Hitchcock's 1960 film Psycho and The Dolphin Hotel in 1408 a short story by Stephen King which was adapted into a 2007 film. Another is Tipton Hotel a fictitious hotel in Disney's "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody." When the show later became a spinoff into "The Suite Life on Deck" the Tipton evolved into the SS Tipton run by the same company. See also List of hotels Industry and careers Bellhop Concierge Front desk clerk a type of clerk General manager Hospitality industry Hotel chains Hotel toilet-paper folding Hotels Innkeeper Night auditor Property caretaker Revenue per available room (RevPAR) Security guard Tourism Transient occupancy tax (Canada) Human habitation types Apartment hotel Bed and breakfast Boutique hotel Cruise ship Eco hotel Guest House Homestay Hospitality service Hostal Hostel Human habitats Inn Luxury resort Motel Serviced apartment Vacation rental References Swiss page with information about straw bale construction. Atelierwernerschmidt.ch. Retrieved on 2011-06-12. Been-seen.comdead link "The 25 Largest Hotels in the World". http://www.vegastodayandtomorrow.com/largesthotels.htm. Retrieved 2009-04-18.  Genting's First World Recognized As World's Largest Hotel Bernama.com Hoshi Ryokan website accessed 22 June 2008. Ho-shi.co.jp. Retrieved on 2011-06-12. "World's Tallest Skyscrapers". Emporis.com. http://www.emporis.com/en/bu/sk/st/tp/wo/. Retrieved 15 March 2009.  Sam Dunn; Judith Heywood (2007-09-07). "Overnight profit". The Times. http://property.timesonline.co.uk/tol/lifeandstyle/property/investment/article2399656.ece. Retrieved 2009-11-04.  ''Home Suite Home'' . BBC News (2007-09-12). Retrieved on 2011-06-12. Elaine Stritch Further reading Wikiversity has learning materials about Internet entrepreneur#Hotel Reservations Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hotel Lundberg Donald E. The Hotel and Restaurant Business Boston : Cahners Books 1974. ISBN 0843620447 v d eTourism Types Accessible tourism  Adventure travel  Agritourism  Alternative tourism  Archaeological tourism  Birth tourism  Bookstore tourism  Christian tourism  Culinary tourism  Cultural tourism  Dark tourism  Dental tourism  Disaster tourism  Drug tourism  Ecotourism  Extreme tourism  Female sex tourism  Garden tourism  Geotourism  Ghetto tourism  Halal tourism  Heritage tourism  Jihadi tourism  LGBT tourism  List of adjectival tourisms  Lists of named passenger trains  Literary tourism  Medical tourism  Music tourism  Nautical tourism  Pop-culture tourism  Religious tourism  Rural tourism  Sacred travel  Safaris  Sex tourism  Slum tourism  Space tourism  Sports tourism  Sustainable tourism  Vacation  Volunteer travel  Water tourism  Wildlife tourism  Wine tourism Hospitality Bed and breakfast  Destination hotel  Destination spa  Front desk  General manager  Homestay  Hospitality industry  Hospitality management studies  Hospitality services  Hostel  Hotel  Hotel manager  Motel  Resort  Restaurant Miscellaneous Campus tour  Gift shop  Grand Tour  Holiday (vacation)  Hypermobility  Package holiday  Passport  Perpetual traveler  Resort town  Road trip  Roadside attraction  Seaside resort  Ski resort  Souvenir  Staycation  Sunday drive  Tour guide  Tour operator  Tourism geography  Tourism region  Tourism Radio  Tourism technology  Tourist attraction  Tourist destination  Tourist trap  Transport  Travel  Travel advisory  Travel agency  Travel behavior  Travel document  Travel insurance  Travel journal  Travel literature  Travel medicine  Travel survey  Travel technology  Travel website  Travel writing  Visa Industry organizations and rankings American Bus Association  BEST Education Network  Caribbean Tourism Organization  Destination marketing organization  European Travel Commission  Historical archive on tourism  South-East Asian Tourism Organisation  Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report  Visitor center  World-Point Academy of Tourism  World Tourism Day  World Tourism Organization  World Tourism rankings  World Travel and Tourism Council  World Travel Monitor Category  Portal  WikiProject